Dancing fools...

A classic Johnny K & The Reet music video created, produced and directed by Adam Housman. We just ask that you wait patiently until the elevator arrives at the top floor. Thank you.

A site for sore ears.....

Yes, there are other music websites that deserve your attention, especially one whose motto is "We listen to lousy records so you won't have to." Wilson & Alroy's Record Reviews is funny, self-effacing and opinionated - and vast, covering popular music from the 1950's through the present. So, who the heck are Wilson and Alroy? Let them answer that:

David Bertrand Wilson, born in 1967, is a college dropout, songwriter and all-around unsavory character who programs computers and subverts capitalism on the rare occasions that he isn't at home listening to records. (DBW) Dr. John Alroy, born in 1966, is the last person you would ever want around in the case of a medical emergency. He lives in Santa Barbara, and works every once in a while as a research biologist. His scientific work is in ecology, systematics, macroevolution, and paleobiology (yeah, that means fossils). (JA)

How can you not like a site that has lists like Best Songs Promoting Polyamory:
Isaac Hayes - Moonlight Lovin' (Menage Á Trois)
Chef - Simultaneous"
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Triad
Rick James - 1, 2, 3 (U, Her & Me)

Take a look at this impressive Fleetwood Mac page, which gives a history of the band and its members using album reviews as the vehicle. On the main page, they have random (changing each visit) album picks/pans of the moment. Enjoyable and informative. Check them out.

G looking for Dylan in NYC...

Email from G-Man 12/15/06

Bob Dylan's American Journey, 1956-1966

No, Bob has not passed away, despite what the title of the Morgan Library & Museum's exhibition on the man might lead you to believe. And this is where I found myself this Friday afternoon, after another morning of being neglected by NYC's sub service. I arrived at Grand Central, after a 45 or so minute trip from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. It was 2:30, belly empty, mouth parched, so I stopped at Midtown's Bar (I think? We'll have to get a ruling on the exact name). Started with an appetizer of Guinness, followed by their version of the chicken sandwich, and two Buds.

On to the actual exhibit:

You're first hit with some video of Bob, one being footage of him in the streets of London talking about how he needs a place that will bathe his dog, buy his bath, burn his bird and give him cigarettes. Or something like that. Showcasing Bob's humor, which is what made me truly interested in his music. What is funnier than him snapping pictures of photographers snapping pictures oh him. Rhetorical.

This was followed by Bob's high school yearbook, a pic of lil' Zimmerman, and a quote of him saying, "follow Little Richard".

The focus of the exhibit was about his admiration for Woody Guthrie, his journey to NYC, leading to the making of his first six albums (Bob Dylan, Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, The Times They're A-Changin', Another Side of Bob Dylan, Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited, Blond on Blonde). Yes, you counted 7 albums; however, the exhibit didn't say much about his first album (self titled, and didn't sell very well until Freewheelin' was released).

There's more to the exhibit, but my favorite parts were seeing his first acoustic guitar and handwritten lyrics. Bob traded his electric guitar for the acoustic shortly after he discovered Guthrie. So does this mean he wasn't a bastard, he didn't sell his soul, or sell-out - or whatever those crazy bohemian kids thought of him when Bob went electric for the first time(?) at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965? And seeing the handwritten lyrics was the most classic. Little pieces of paper with scribbles of lines that developed into such songs as Like A Rolling Stone and Blowin' in the Wind. There were also two poems he wrote in high school; Bob describing one as "a good poem", and the other as "a bad poem" - although if he didn't label this one as "bad", I'm sure most fans would marvel over it anyways because not many people really know what he's talking about in these songs. But everyone still loves them, and will after he really passes away. - G

(Morgan Library and Museum - 225 Madison Ave. @ 36th St.)

So this nerve rock group walks into a bar.....

Last minute gig announcement via email from The Sawtelles:

At 8:30pm at Jitters on Route 10 on the Southington/Plainville line. This is comedy nite; we go on til about 9:15, then it'll be comics... then we'll be back for another set after they are done, prob after about 45 mins. Who knows, you might even laugh once or twice (and not at us for once). We will try to keep a rein on P's ukelele this time.

When Black Friday comes, I'm gonna dig myself a hole; gonna lay down in it 'til I satisfy my soul....

A Friday fact courtesy of songfacts.com:

Black Friday by Steely Dan from the album Katy Lied (1975)- lyrics

When Black Friday comes
I'll stand down by the door
And catch the grey men when they
Dive from the fourteenth floor

This is about Friday, September 24, 1869. It is known as "Black Friday" in the US because of a failed ploy that left many wealthy investors broke. The investors tried to corner the market on gold, buying as much of it as they could and driving up the price, but when the government found out, they released $4 million worth of gold into the market, driving down the price and clobbering the investors.

While the song is about events in the US, it mentions a town in Australia: "Fly down to Musswellbrook." Musswellbrook is a rural town 2 hours North of Sydney that is full of kangaroos (thus the line, "Nothing to do but feed all the kangaroos"). it is believed that Walter Becker and Donald Fagen selected the name of Musswellbrook from an atlas, mainly because it worked well with the next line, "I'm going to strike out all the big red words from my little black book." They also wanted a place far away from Los Angeles

Play songfacts.com Lyrical Pursuit here!

Tom needs a nap....

Troubadour Chris DuBose performs his 60th birthday tribute to the ever-weary Tom LaBella last Saturday night. Wish the old guy birthday greetings in the comment section here.

Low Fidelity.......

While hustling through Penn Station yesterday, I motioned to a poster for the new musical High Fidelity, based on Nick Hornby's book and the neat, quirky movie with the fabulous soundtrack, and said, "Hey, we should go see that!". Well, THAT's not going to happen - it's closing after only 14 performances! - story

We're walkin', yes indeed.....

If there is anything worse than guys driving around clueless but refusing to ask for directions, it's guys WALKING around clueless yada, yada, yada. I was in Manhattan for a seminar at the Hotel Pennsylvannia and G-Man accompanied me, settling in at Border's directly across the street. He could have opted for an audience spot at the Maury Povich Show being taped at the hotel (9:00am and 12:00pm), but he declined. At three o'clock we set out walking to find somewhere to have some dinner, a couple beers and some music - all without an ounce of a plan. On the way, got a call from Kay, looking for The Reet. We walked all the way to the Village before we stopped at a little corner bar to assess our options over a couple Boddingtons- and decided to ask the barkeep for help. Ended up walking back uptown to 27th/3rd to the Rodeo Bar & Grill, where we had dinner, but couldn't wait around for the Whiskeyhounds, slated to perform at ten (went onto their myspace site; they seem pretty good). Cool place, but should have gone to a 7:30pm show at Ace of Clubs to see CasHank Hootenanny Jamboree, a semi-monthly open classic country jam session dedicated to the music of Hank Williams, Johnny Cash & more - for the Christmas show. Next time, a little planning.

I'm waiting for my man.....

Velvet Underground rarity sells on eBay
By Verena Dobnik (AP)

NEW YORK - Forty years after it was made, The Velvet Underground's first recording has become a financial hit — in cyberspace. Bought for 75 cents four years ago at a Manhattan flea market, the rare recording of music that ended up on the influential New York band's first album, "The Velvet Underground & Nico," sold on eBay for a closing bid of $155,401. The buyer is a mystery, only identified by the eBay screen name: "mechadaddy." But a greater mystery endures: How did the 12-inch, acetate LP end up buried in a box of records at a flea market?

"We cued it up and were stunned — the first song was not 'Sunday Morning' as on the 'Velvet Underground & Nico' Verve LP, but rather it was 'European Son' — the song that is last on that LP, and it was a version neither of us had ever heard before!" Isaacson wrote.- complete story

SB & BS share new music at Cafe Nine...

I know that when I was nine years old, I didn't have some hot chick with a guitar singing to me about a hooker, but Josh from Staten Island had the experience (and probably some interesting post-show dreams) courtesy of Sarah Borges at Cafe Nine Saturday night. Lucky boy!

Sarah and her Broken Singles, fresh from their East-coast tour opening for Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys, played for about and hour and a half showcasing some new songs (complete with clever little hooks), reworking some of their Silver City gems and even throwing in a tasty Charlie Pride number. They sounded great and seemed to be relaxed and having fun with it all. And Josh was singing right along, first from his side-window sill perch and then front and center at the base of the stage. Sarah playfully chided the young man for being dressed up in New York Yankees gear while enjoying the Red Sox-loving band. Between songs, bassist (and Sarah's on-stage foil) Binky informed us that this is their last live show of the year and, interestingly, the January Cafe Nine show was their first of 2006. "It's nice to be back in the Rock 'N Roll Living Room (Cafe Nine bills itself as the 'musician's living room'). Let me tell you, we've played in alot of rock 'n roll bathrooms." Another solid, entertaining show. I've emailed Sarah for a set listing and will post if I get it.

I can only imagine Josh's interpretation of the audience-participation chorus "Turn your love light on, open up your back door." Some day in the future he will look back at this night - and smile.

Talking briefly with Binky and Sarah after the show before their two-hour trek back to Boston, they explained that they will now hunker down to practice the new songs and hit the studio in January to record the new album. If things go smoothly, it will be released in April or May on the Sugar Hill label.

Singer/guitarist Bryan Rud and a talented guitarist named Josh (no, not Staten Island Josh) played a very entertaining opening set.

Since I am completely spastic with my camera, I screwed up a video from last night's gig. So, instead, I'm presenting a YouTube video (courtesy of ssbvideo) of one of their new songs from last month's show at Johnny D's in Somerville:

New Lucinda album near!!!!!!!!..........

Lucinda Williams shares heartbreak on new album by Wes Orshoski (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Loss and loneliness are at the core of
Lucinda Williams' largely down-tempo album, "West," the singer/songwriter's first release since 2003. The disc, slated to be released February 13 via Lost Highway, finds the Grammy winner coping with another painful breakup and the passing of her mother, whom she reminisces in songs like "Mama You Sweet" and "Fancy Funeral." In such songs as "Come On," "Learning How to Live" and "Everything Has Changed," Williams again deals with heartbreak.

"The songs deal with a chapter in my life and they definitely tell a story," Williams told Billboard.com. "It's probably been the most prolific time in my life as a writer. I'd been through so many changes -- my mother's death and a very tumultuous relationship that ended badly -- so obviously there's a lot of pain and struggling, but it ends with a look toward the future." - complete article

And in the "idiots come to their senses" category........

Ryan likely to return in a dual Apple Harvest Festival role
by Robert C. Pollack, Record-Journal staff

SOUTHINGTON — John Ryan has been offered the dual position of 39th Apple Harvest Festival coordi­nator and sponsorship coordinator — subject to approval by the Town Council. That approval is expected Mon­day. The Apple Harvest Festival Com­mittee made its selection Thursday and Ryan said its chairman, Town Councilor Chris Palmieri, called him with the news. “He didn’t tell me how many other appli­cants they had, but I was really happy that I will back to manage the festival,” Ryan said. “It’s a great event and I have been working with outstanding people. The volunteers are amazing.” Ryan wanted to obtain sponsors while serv­ing as festival coordinator because first, it was related to his new com­pany, Ryan Event Productions, and second, “because the coordinator is in a better position to get sponsors, because he or she knows the event so well.” Ryan will earn the same $25,000 he made as coordinator last year, with an additional 10 percent of the fee paid by returning sponsors and 20 percent for any new sponsors he recruits. At first, he told the committee he would not accept the coordinator position unless it was coupled with the sponsorship recruiting job. But he later softened his position and said that while he wanted both, he would accept the coordinator’s job alone, if offered.

Ryan has been festival coordinator for the two years it has been managed by the town after 36 years in which is was un­der the management and spon­sorship of the Greater Southington Chamber of Com­merce — the last two of those under management of Daniels Productions. Committee member Cheryl Lounsbury said “the selection was easy because of John’s past performance and knowledge of the festival. “We had no trouble with giv­ing him both jobs, but the com­mittee felt it had to make it an open process, which we did. We only had a few other appli­cants and John was our clear choice. “We are hopeful that the 39th festival will be more suc­cessful than ever. The value of this event is that not only has it put Southington on the map, but it allows a lot of nonprofits to earn enough money to do good works in town the rest of the year. “What John has been able to do is to show the vision of what a local festival could be. It was becoming too regional before the town took it over.”

OK, I believe them. Right. The real explanation is - "The selection was easy, but we felt we had to bust his balls a little because he was getting more attention than the committee." Let's hope the committee doesn't now try to micro-manage the festival.

It's Friday, People!.....

Well said, from seattlepi....

Happy birthday, John Lennon - If a crazed fan hadn't murdered him in 1980, and barring other unforeseen disasters, today would have been John Lennon's 64th birthday. For Beatles' fans, even casual Beatles' fans, the number has a musical ring. One of the great songs from the Paul McCartney/John Lennon songbook is titled "When I'm Sixty-Four." If you were there when the song came out, you might remember feeling that 64 was as distant as the North Star. "When I get older losing my hair, Many years from now. Will you still be sending me a valentine, Birthday greetings, bottle of wine?" Here's a valentine to you, John.

Little Steven starts own record label by Larry McShane (AP)

NEW YORK - It's not like Steven Van Zandt doesn't have enough to keep him busy. There's his job as host of his nationally syndicated "Underground Garage" radio program, with more than 1 million listeners in 200 markets. And his position as head of his own channel on Sirius Satellite Radio. And his role as consigliere Silvio Dante on "The Sopranos." Oh, and he's the guitarist with Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Yet this week, Van Zandt added another line to his rapidly expanding resume: head of his own record label. In a deal with Best Buy stores, he rolled out the first six records on his rocking new label. - story

Subway serenade - G-Man, taking the subway to Manhattan earlier this week, encountered a group of passengers who broke into some pretty entertaining a capella doo wop singing for the folks.....

Grammys announced - The 49th annual Grammy Awards nominations have been announced. - complete listing

Did I mention that Sarah Borges & the Broken Singles will be at Cafe Nine on Saturday? Oh. - Sarah pics at flickr

Live at the Fillmore West.....

Thanks to a Rolling Stone Magazine article, Classic Shows Free Online (issue 1015) by Steve Knopper, we can now listen to over 300 rare concert recordings made by the late promoter Bill Graham at wolfgangsvault.com. You must register to listen, but it's free. There seems to be concern by the musicians involved that they should be getting compensation from this venture, which brings traffic to a site that sells concert posters, tee-shirts, etc., so this may be a temporary pleasure. Each concert has an interesting summary giving performers/perspective.

I listened to a wonderful Van Morrison concert (11/1/78) at the Bottom Line last night:

Concert Summary Van Morrison - lead vocals, guitar, piano, sax Bobby Tench - guitar, backing vocals David Hayes - bass Peter Van Hooks - drums Pete Bardens - keyboards Pee Wee Ellis - saxophones Katie Kissoon - backing vocals Ann Peacock - backing vocals Van Morrison was enjoying a commercial renaissance with this tour and the album he was promoting at the time. Always a consummate performer, Morrison delivered a stunning performance in New York's intimate Bottom Line club, the venue that launched the careers of both Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel, among countless others. Opening with a jazzed up version of "Moondance," the show provided a healthy mix of material from his then-new LP, Wavelength, and all the best-loved Morrison classics. The band was lava-hot and provided the perfect compliment to Morrison's free form vocal stylings. In the line-up was Pete Bardens (who also played keyboards in Morrison's 1960s British Invasion band, Them) and former Jeff Beck Group vocalist/guitarist, Bobby Tench. Because he had such a great band, in the course of one show Morrison successfully mixes up hot jazz, blazing blues, romantic and melodic ballads, and gospel-fevered rock 'n' roll. By the time he shakes it up on the closers - "Wild Night" and "Caravan"- the audience is completely in the palm of his hand. "Crazy Love," "Tupelo Honey" and "Into The Mystic" faithfully bring the listener back to his classic early ‘70s Warner Brothers Records period, when he was the darling of the pop music press. "Kingdom Hall," "Checkin' It Out," and the aforementioned "Wavelength" were new songs at the time, but were just as well received, since it was clear to the audience that Van Morrison had just released one of his best albums in years. Still, it was Morrison's earliest solo hit, "Brown Eyed Girl" that first brought the audience to its feet. Although the audience did not know it, this show almost didn’t happen. Minutes prior to going on stage, Morrison got into an altercation with his then-road manager, Mick Brigdon. Both had been drinking and after being held down, Morrison told the promoters he would not go on if Brigdon was even on the same street, let alone inside the venue. Brigdon was asked to leave, and Morrison eventually went on to perform this memorable show. Maybe all the excitement had pumped him up for a more energetic performance. For that Bottom Line audience, and now for all of us, this show remains a classic.

So give it a try. Here's a sample of the concerts available:

Muddy Waters Blues Band 11/06/1966 Fillmore Auditorium
The Who 04/06/1968 Fillmore East
Quicksilver Messenger Service 06/07/1968 Fillmore East
Steppenwolf 08/27/1968 Fillmore West
Sly & the Family Stone 10/05/1968 Late Show Fillmore East
Jimi Hendrix Experience 10/11/1968 Early Show Winterland
Terry Reid 12/15/1968 Fillmore West
Led Zeppelin 01/11/1969 Fillmore West
Taj Mahal 09/18/1969 Fillmore West
The Sons of Champlin 10/24/1969 Winterland
Neil Young & Crazy Horse 03/06/1970 Early Show Fillmore East
Miles Davis Quintet 03/07/1970 Fillmore East
Laura Nyro 06/20/1970 Fillmore East

Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles Saturday night at Cafe Nine...

Sarah and the BS, fresh from their tour with Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys, return to Cafe Nine in New Haven this weekend. Per Cafe Nine's website, "....Beautiful roots songstress Sarah Borges crafts pretty songs with heavy bottoms. Critics have said she is a cross between Pat Benatar and Patsy Cline with a stage presence to win them all."

Not sure about the heavy bottoms (see below), but a must-see! I shall be tardy, however, arriving from good friend Tom L's 60th birthday party in Middletown. Rumor has it that Sarah will be playing some great stuff from her new release expected out in the Spring. There you have it - great band and a great venue. No excuses accepted, be there! Aloha.

Heavy bottoms.....reminds me of that Spinal Tap classic Big Bottom songfacts.com: The bigger the cushion, the sweeter the pushin, that's what I said. The looser the waistband, the deeper the quicksand, or so I have read. My baby fits me like a flesh tuxedo. I love to sink her with my pink torpedo. Big bottom, big bottom, talk about bum cakes, my gal's got 'em. Big bottom, drive me out of my mind. How can I leave this behind? I saw her on monday, twas my lucky bun day, you know what I mean. I love her each weekday, each velvety cheekday, you know what I mean. My love gun's loaded and she's in my sights Big game's waiting there inside her tights Big bottom, big bottom, talk about mud flaps, my gal's got 'em. Big bottom, drive me out of my mind. How can I leave this behind?

Joanna Newsom????

"Joanna Newsom's performance Wednesday night was easily the strangest show I've ever seen at Toad's... it was odd to see rows of chairs set up for the audience, and even weirder that Wednesday's featured attraction plays harp, an instrument not often associated with grimy rock clubs. Nor is Newsom's music, for that matter. It's best classified as part of the freak-folk movement, and her sprawling songs are more like mini-suites, full of stream-of-consciousness pastoral imagery and eclectic arrangements performed by a group of scruffy hipsters on banjo, accordion, tambura and other instruments well suited to, say, traditional Bulgarian music." - Eric Danton (Hartford Courant) - concert review

"The cover of Joanna Newsom’s new album, “Ys,” is an oil painting by the California artist Benjamin Vierling. Newsom is depicted with plaited blond hair, wearing a billowing blouse and a garland of flowers. She is seated at a window on a thronelike chair, holding a sickle in her right hand and a tiny gilt-framed painting of a moth in her left. A blackbird perches on the windowsill, a cherry in its beak; beyond lie valleys and hills. A press release issued by Newsom’s record label, Drag City, says that Vierling “did the cover painting old-master style, with layers of egg-tempera and glazes. Strictly 16th-century processes, just like the recording of the album.”

The Renaissance references may be a joke, but a careful, almost precious husbandry of the past is characteristic of Newsom’s work. Newsom, who is twenty-four, is a classically trained harpist, and “Ys”—pronounced “eess”; it’s the name of an island in Breton mythology—is a series of complex, through-composed songs that have more in common with Kurt Weill’s long-form ballads than with contemporary pop music. Yet Newsom tends to perform in rock clubs, not concert halls, and many of her fans—including the novelist Dave Eggers, who praised her “bare and unflinching” music in Spin—are devotees of independent rock. Moreover, the songs on “Ys” feature lush, intricate orchestral arrangements by the pop composer Van Dyke Parks. (Parks, who was a child actor, worked on Rufus Wainwright’s 1998 début record and on “Smile,” the legendary album by the Beach Boys, which was begun in 1967 but not completed until 2004.)

Newsom is sometimes lumped with a group of acoustic musicians called “freak folk” or “free folk.” They include the bands Tower Recordings and Feathers and the warbling singer and songwriter Devendra Banhart, with whom Newsom shares a fearlessness and a deceptively childlike air. In essence, however, folk describes simple songs that are universally accessible and performed on cheap instruments, if any. (Rap easily qualifies as folk music.) Newsom uses antique words that many English speakers won’t recognize, and plays an expensive and heavy instrument that you couldn’t bring on a camping trip, and some of her recent songs are almost as long as American sitcoms (average length: twenty-two minutes, without commercials)." - Sasha Freer-Jones (New Yorker) album review

2006 Billboard Music Awards....

LIVE from Las Vegas!......I took a look on the program website and was completely underwhelmed by tonight's performers - I will not be watching.

The Music of Cold Case...

Episode: Forever Blue (1968); Sunday, December 3, 9pm et/pt

Lilly and the team re-open the 1968 killing of a local cop suspected of being gay. The word on the street is that Coop was involved in a drug bust gone bad, but Lilly secures information that indicates that Coop may have been romantically involved with his partner, Jimmy, which did not sit well with the rest of the force. Lilly and the team must now open old wounds and track a killer, even if it is one of their own.

“Happy Together” - The Turtles
“Love Me Two Times” - The Doors
“Pictures of Matchstick Men” - Status Quo
“Slip Away” - Clarence Carter
“White Room” - Cream
“My Back Pages” - The Byrds

Music listing from previous shows - here

Rural rapper's star on the rise after Internet debut...

MARLY-GOMONT, France (AFP) - A black rapper from a backwater village is rapidly becoming a media sensation in France after a tongue-in-cheek video of him singing about his rural experience debuted on the Internet. Kamini, as he is known, has been thrust into the spotlight since his tune about his home town (population 423) of Marly-Gomont first hit the web in September. He has been interviewed on television, sung on a talent show, and been fought over by record labels who see him as a new entertainer offering a rap wrested free of the urban angst common to the genre. complete story - website - But I must warn you, it is in French......and, as you well know, those French have a different word for EVERYTHING!

Seinfeld, The Lost Episode....

From Marsha V - Seinfeld spoof by National Lampoon

Rant targets to meet with Michael Richards -story here

The latest grab.....

The Road to Escondido (JJ Cale/Eric Clapton)- much-hyped; listened to it on the drive home; started slow, but then got very good - nothing groundbreaking, but a good first impression

The Wanderer (Dion & the Belmonts)- 18 original hit recordings 1958-1963; love do-wop and late 50s streetcorner stuff and Dion was one of the best; he's still out there doing some pretty good blues

In the Right Place (Dr. John)- his big commercial success, but I will not apologize for loving it - it's good

Electric Rodeo (Shooter Jennings)- Waylon's boy, who has another cd titled Put the O Back in Country

No excuses Friday....

It's the end of the week. You've worked hard, or at least feigned working hard, so reward yourself with some local entertainment. You will be doing both you and the local music scene a favor, for if you don't, who will? And will it be there for you when you decide you want it. So, here are some options for a Friday night:

Smokin' With Chris welcomes blues guitarist Dan Stevens for an 8pm show after you've sucked down some smoked ribs. Jitters Coffeehouse - The Sawtelles bring their 'nerve rock' to town (actually it was already in town) New Britain Museum of American Art presents Tony Harrington and Touch Band for its First Friday series. From 5:30 – 8 p.m. each month, First Friday features live jazz music performed by local and nationally-known musicians, an opportunity to view the Museum’s premier permanent collection of 300 years of American art, a chance to mix and mingle with other art and jazz lovers, a selection of light hors d’oeuvres, and wine, beer, and soda. The cost is $7 for Museum members and $12 for non-members and includes two drink tickets with a cash bar thereafter. On Saturday at 3pm, there will be live jazz at Integrity 'N Music, the BEST jazz store (34 years of jazz) around. The lineup is Sean Clapis (guitar), Matt Warner (piano), Seth Lewis (bass), Jake Goldbas (drums) Just do it. Now, if I can only follow my own advice.....

Fabulous Farquahr notes from Ned....

Hi. I saw the post about the Fab Farquahr on your blog. My dad, Ed Hayden, was best friends w/ Doug Lapham, the leader of the group. My mom also grew up and was best friends with his wife, Sue. The band actually wasn't from Cape Cod as stated on your blog, they all lived in the Guilford/Branford area of Connecticut. I forgot the town Doug's house was in, but i spent a lot of time there growing up. The Macgowans lived nearby there too and I remember they were antique car collectors and used to drive them around a lot. I even saw the band once when I was a teenager in New York City. They were great. Anyway, enjoyed reading about them and thought I'd just throw my two cents of memories in. -Ned Hayden

johnnykmusic- Thanks for writing, Ned. I have received dozens of emails during the past year asking for more information about the beloved Farquahr. previous post

The Sawtelles....hot off the presses

I'm not knowledgable about the Sawtelles. Saw them at this year's Daffodil Festival and liked them, so it's on my to-do list to see them again. And they are from Plantsville - GET OUT! (Elaine Benes shove)... But where? Here are some December dates per their monthly emails:

Friday, December 1st- Jitters Coffeehouse in Southington, CT Friday, December 8th- TRASH AMERICAN STYLE/ GEROSA RECORDS JOINT CELEBRATION at the MONKEY BAR in Danbury, CT: JARGON SOCIETY (this is Peter, Lys, and Elisa Flynn for a big reunion) SAWTELLES SCHOOL SAFETY PATROL SANS CHERUBS , KISS KISS ,BOMBAY SOUL SHOP Saturday, December 9th- Artwell Gallery in Torrington, CT - 7pm, $5/ all-ages - the SSP open the show. We finished work on our Two-Tone Tarpaper Fantasy record and it is available for $5, as is the SSP disc. We still have Here Is.... and Yellow. Pretty soon you'll be able to stock a jukebox with just our tunes. We've got ideas about doing our own new haven covers record; we'll see how long that takes to shore up. Have you been listening in on Independisc radio Wed nites? Go to independisc for details. The show is over at Cygnus internet radio. Gary has a great show with occasional in-studio guests. Thurs afternoons on 88.1 wesu from 5:10pm-6pm, the ThinMan has his Homegrown show. If you have not sent him your music to play, you've been missing out on at least a billion people tuning in via the radio dial or by computer. Buy your jukebox yet?

gettin' a dusty groove on.....

I was searching the internets (series of tubes 'n pipes) for previous James Hunter CDs; found one on Dusty Groove America and couldn't resist grabbing a few others:

Believe What I Say (James Hunter) - $14

Christmas (James Brown) - $6

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (Gil Scott-Heron) - $9

New Moon Daughter (Cassandra Wilson) - $4

In concert...a matter of taste

Top Concert Tours per Pollstar Rod Stewart Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band Genesis Red Hot Chili Peppers Guns N' Roses The Who The Rolling Stones Pearl Jam Aerosmith/Motley Crue Justin Timberlake

Recent Johnnykmusic Concerts James Hunter at Iron Horse Music Hall Kate Bull at 55Bar Christine Ohlman w/ Zydeco Hogs at Apple Harvest Festival Bob Dylan w/Jimmie Vaugh/Lou Ann Barton at New Britain Stadium Susan Cowsill at Cafe Nine Sarah Borges at Lizard Lounge Christine Ohlman at Cafe Nine Delbert McClinton at Mohegan Sun Wolf Den Sawtelles/Christine Ohlman/Turtles at Daffodil Festival

What great concerts have I missed recently? (I'm thinking Amy Rigby at Cafe Nine for one)

Those oldies but goodies remind me of you (but not me)...

Old and in the way....NY Times article about AARP's efforts to tap the aging boomers' music thirst....

Rock of Ages by JEFF LEEDS (Published: November 26, 2006)

AT 52, Martha Stinson is not quite sure where to turn when it comes to new music. The local Tower Records in Nashville, where Mrs. Stinson is an owner of a general contracting company, is going out of business, and she never did figure out how to load music onto the digital-music player she bought a couple of years ago. But she may soon receive an overture from a source not known for its musical savvy: AARP. She is the kind of consumer that the association is targeting with a sweeping marketing campaign that it hopes will entice millions of new members, as the first kids weaned on rock ’n’ roll turn gray.

And if Mrs. Stinson is any indication, the group faces an uphill battle. She has repeatedly thrown out AARP membership solicitations, after all. “It’s going to be tough,” to market to those like her, she said. “Our generation has always been a little revolutionary. We feel like we’re in middle age. Were out bike riding, running businesses. Our kids are fully grown, and we’re kind of footloose and fancy free.”

Older consumers (along with children) represent one of the few reliable markets in the music business these days, and AARP, the organization for older Americans, is keen to capitalize on that. On Tuesday the group announced that for the first time it will sponsor a national concert tour, by Tony Bennett. And that’s just a start. Other sponsorships will follow, and from those, AARP hopes, many new members. With plans in the works for an alliance with a major retail chain, a Web-based music recommendation service with Pandora and even a music blog, AARP is looking to graduate from advocate of the shuffleboard set to the ranks of cultural concierge.

“I hope that we make this thing so relevant and so cool,” said Tena Clark, a music consultant helping to devise the group’s marketing strategy. “I would hope that one day in the future that my 20-year-old daughter would want to borrow my AARP card to get into a concert just like she tries to borrow her sister’s I.D.” Consumers like Ms. Stinson may not be the only skeptics however. For musicians, a deal with AARP is a different matter than a deal with a hip coffee house or a fashion retailer. No matter how hard the group may try to change its image — even with the likes of Paul McCartney and Susan Sarandon on the cover of its magazine — some people still associate it with the Saturday-night-bingo set. And many musicians may want to keep their distance, even if it means sacrificing enormous sales. -complete article

Carolyn B & friends piss off Jack White in Boston.....

CB email: - Last weekend I saw/met Jack White and his other 3 band members at Whiskey Park (bar in the Park Plaza hotel). Actually pretty funny, we got up to pay the tab, when he and his buddies took our seats, so my friend turned around and said, hey..Jack White just stole our seats! So Jack, really tall guy, gets up and says, oh, sorry man...and offers to move, and my friends assure him that he can stay and that they were just joking around. It was fun, made for in interesting Friday night.

At least he didn't punch her out - story 2003

Who is this guy? We must find out more....

Peter met up with Barrence Whitfield (also Peter Wolf of J. Geils/Fay Dunaway fame) at the James Hunter show at the Paradise in Boston Wednesday night. He had previously seen Whitfield perform and was raving about his singing.

Per his AMG profile - A Boston-based singer of what one might refer to as "traditional" R&B (i.e.,'50s- and '60s-style), Barrence Whitfield is the owner of one incredible pair of lungs and limitless energy and enthusiasm for his music. A soul screamer in the spirit of Little Richard, Wilson Pickett, Solomon Burke, and early Don Covay, Whitfield & the Savages, though never breaking big nationally, are a great cult act, a triumph of substance over style, with a bunch of terrific records to boot.

Seems like a guy we need to check out. His schedule shows him playing in the Netherlands the next couple weeks, but then he's back in the Boston area for some shows. If you catch him, let me know.

Thanks to Peter for the heads up on this....

Over the years, a fine-tuned Iron Horse
By Jane Roy Brown, Boston Globe Correspondent November 20, 2006

NORTHAMPTON -- It was a very '70s idea: Open a little club, serve some simple food, bring in some folk musicians, some folk - rock and blues, maybe. But the music would be more for atmosphere. At night, candlelight would illuminate the faces of people talking earnestly across tiny tabletops. Loners, scribbling in their journals, would look up every so often to signal a waitress for another espresso.
Speaking to a reporter for Northampton's alternative weekly newspaper, the Advocate, in 1989, 10 years after he started the Iron Horse Music Hall , Jordi Herold humorously recalled his dream of opening a "Bohemian cafe, with candles and wine and cheese and breadboards with little peasant loaves on them." It was, well, a simpler time.

Herold, then a recent graduate of Hampshire College in neighboring Amherst, abandoned his romantic notion for a time to teach in the Amherst public schools. When he found he couldn't shake his dream, he and a business partner bought what would become the Iron Horse in Northampton. The music was tame, in keeping with its role as backdrop -- strictly classical, jazz, and folk. As the owners discovered their true passion, the peasant loaves and cheese melted into the background and the music took center stage, literally. The club started to gain a reputation as a breakout venue for national talent. Tracy Chapman, Wynton Marsalis , Suzanne Vega, Stanley Jordan, George Winston, Michelle Shocked -- all honed their chops at the Iron Horse before moving into the big time . Herold's intuitive ear for new talent, his willingness to research the business and talent sides of the music scene, and his keen appreciation of all kinds of music gave him the kind of feelers that have built recording empires. "It's like some of the same sense you got when Tracy Chapman played here," Herold recalled in his 1989 interview. ". . . As soon as she went on stage, the buzzer went off. It's like that woman sang just four notes and I knew what was happening. You remember those moments."

So do the patrons of the Iron Horse, who, 27 years after the doors opened, still line the sidewalk in front of the club on Center Street to check out little-known performers who have generated an insider buzz or to hear new sets by established favorites like Leon Redbone and Roomful of Blues . Seating is first-come, first-served, even for ticket holders, ensuring those lines. For those who attended live shows in their youth, stamping your feet to keep the blood flowing on a frigid February night may bring on flashbacks of waiting for the Byrds to open at Fillmore West or the Allman Brothers at Boston Garden, or even Bob Dylan or Joan Baez at Club 47 (now Club Passim ) in Harvard Square . The stage is busy on weekdays (Tuesdays through Thursdays and the occasional Monday) as well as weekends, sometimes billing two shows a night .

Inside, it's a time warp -- little tables with candles, a mezzanine, a menu harking back to a time when nachos were exotic to college kids. The only things missing are cheese fondue and cigarette smoke. Nobody seems to miss the smoke, and, as one blogger recently replied to a patron who had the nerve to dis the Iron Horse menu online, "Dude -- it's bar food!" As for the cheek-to-elbow intimacy of the place, Herold's wisdom on the subject is: "There might be a bigger, padded seat at the civic center, but you're not going to be 10 feet away in a room the size of a big living room, from who could very well be the same [caliber of] artist."

Herold wound up building his own sort of empire, Iron Horse Entertainment Group, which books live music and other performing arts at Northampton's top concert stages: the Calvin Theatre and Performing Arts Center, Pearl Street Nightclub, and an outdoor summer series at the Pines Theatre in Look Park. A division called Iron Horse Presents produces concerts at other New England venues, including Boston's Berklee Performance Center and the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square.

Meanwhile, the music bookings have stayed eclectic, mixing flower-child faves with brash newcomers. November's lineup, for instance, features both Aztec Two-Step , a band popular in the '70s, and Enter the Haggis (punk-folk bagpipe). These are the kinds of acts that are hard to come by outside of bigger cities, and the arts-minded emigres to the hill towns around Northampton show up for a lot of them. As one gray-haired patron said on a brisk night while waiting for doors to open for the early show, "Thank God for college towns."

Jane Roy Brown, a writer in Western Mass., can be reached at janeroybrown@verizon.net.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL YOU TURKEYS!

from johnnykmusic

I ain't no senator's son, y'all....

John Fogerty's appearance at halftime of the Lions/Dolphins game - what's your take:

Lame, what the hell is he doing singing at a football game

He sounded great, looked great

He sold out for a $50,000 appearance fee; he should have higher standards

No sell-out, for he dared to sing "Fortunate One" (although a duet with John Kerry would have been cooler)

Fifteen-second snipets of his hits sucks

Who the hell is John Fogerty?

James Hunter at Iron Horse on Tuesday night....

I'm such an ass, procrastinating about getting a ticket to James Hunter at the Iron Horse Music Hall on Tuesday night and now it says online that it's sold out! Fuck it, I'm going. Once in Northampton, I cruise past the venue on Center Street - no one around. Next stop is Turn It Up, where I ask if they knew the procedure for sold outs. They didn't, but directed me to the ticket venue around the corner where a young lady pleasantly told me she had no idea, but that the doors opened at 5:30. Okay, fine. With some time to kill, I scooted back to TIU to grab a few discs - Velvet Underground (Banana), Mamas & Pappas (California Dreamin') and Eric Clapton (Slowhand) - a retro cache.

Anyone got an extra ticket? Yep, someone always cancels when you grab tickets for a big group, so I'm in luck. "Does this mean he has to sit with us?" Fuck you, lady, just give me the ticket. No, actually she was kidding - or not, for I ended up at a 'table for uno.' Oh yeah, now how to look thoughtful for the next hour and a half until showtime. Sam's Winter Lager and a chicken/black bean burrito help.

Opening for James hunter is Milton, a three-guitar band from NYC. Actually, their website says the band also has drums and backing vocals, but I guess they didn't make the travel squad. They appear regularly at The Living Room in NYC. Only played about four or five songs, but I liked them. Perhaps I can catch them for a longer show in NYC.

The crowd is buzzing, everyone relating just how he/she discovered James Hunter, who, as if on cue, makes his way down the aisle and then downstairs to the dressing room. A few minutes later the band files past us, instruments in hand, toward the stage .....and we're off! Hey, that's Derek Huston, sax player for The Iguanas, playing baritone sax in Hunter's Band! The drummer, looking something like Jim McKay circa 1970's, is from Dublin (if I heard correctly), while the keyboard player is from Brooklyn. Didn't catch the names/locations of the upright bass player or the other sax player. The show meets our high expectations - Hunter and the band are tight and energetic, stretching out on his People Gonna Talk songs and throwing in a couple new ones, notably Jackie Wilson's Lonely Teardrops. Great show! The boys are playing at the Paradise in Boston on Wednesday night.



alt="" />

Pollstar article 11/26/06 on James Hunter - here

Sarah, Bob Dylan and Jack White.....a brother-in-law perspective......

Email from Peter G, he of excellent music taste....

Sarah Borges at Johnny D's in Somerville, MA: I met up with Andy and his friends there. Good show, some new songs. Johnny D's is a great place to watch music. Not too loud, an enthusiastic crowd, people get up and dance. She is a very smooth performer, I think very professional. She had her minimum band....no guest stars like at the Lizard. She didn't go on until about 11:30, but I had paced myself with football, so it wasn't bad. Said hello to Sarah after the show, mentioned that my brother in law is her number one fan...."Oh yeah, Johnny K" (photo set from snowriderguy)

Bob Dylan/Reconteurs at Boston University: Last weekend saw Bob Dylan and the Raconteurs (Jack White) at BUs new hockey arena. It's a really nice venue.....but the Raconteurs were unbearably loud and completely un-interesting...just awful, just plain noise....isn't that what they said about Stravinski? It's a generation thing....I think Jonathan is a big Jack White fan, and Ron and Ned and Aidan loved it....Carolyn, however, arranged to not even come to the concert until after the Raconteurs were finished...a wise move. Anyway, I enjoy the club experience much more.

johnny k response: Sarah, I'm not your number one fan, that would be kinda creepy.....but I am a SB evangelist.....and I like the club venue also. Sarah and her Broken Singles will perform at Cafe Nine in New Haven on Saturday, December 9. Be there!!

Hangin'.......

Just hanging out, reading the newspaper and listening to Eddie Jefferson's Letter To Home while waiting to play golf (frost delay until 9am).

G-Man stopped by the Salty Dog Bar & Grill in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn on Thursday night and caught a set of The Dirty Stayouts.

Brownies vs. Steelers today in a marquee matchup of 3-6 teams. Will catch the end of it at Sliders with JK. Go Brownies!

But I lost my class notes, professor....

Interesting MySpace jazz blog:

My name is Greg Pagel, and I am an adjunct instructor at UW-Green Bay, teaching a class in Jazz History. I have a Bachelor of Music Degree with an Emphasis in Jazz Studies from Lawrence University, and a Master of Music Degree in Contemporary Improvisation from New England Conservatory. This MySpace page is intended for students of my Jazz History class. Here, I will post my notes from each class and keep you posted regarding what you need to know in order do well. This is not a substitute for class attendance. If you want a good grade from me this semester, you will need to come to class regularly. But I hope to use the magic of MySpace to help keep things clear. I hope you will also use this forum to ask me any questions or comment on anything we have discussed or listened to in class. I will also provide links to other resources for those interested in exploring this topic in more depth. Thanks!

James Hunter....should I stay or should I go?....

Yeah, it's a Tuesday night, but I've got to make myself go up to Northampton to catch R&B sensation James Hunter at the Iron Horse Music Hall or I'll be kicking myself for being such a wuss. I'll probably make the hour+ trek north alone, but hope to get some good photos to share. For Beantown fans, Hunter will appear at the Paradise on Wednesday night.

Previous James Hunter post

Thursday....Brooklyn bound

This Briarcliff Manor High School Class of 1956 to 1960 Juke Box website, containing 420 songs from that era, was forwarded to me by Stevie P (very good friend of Tiger Woods)! Some good stuff. To hear them, I had to download/save, then play with Media Player. There is language on the site urging you to purchase music after listening. I suppose they feel it covers them from legal harrassment, but does it cover us?

Got my weekly email from Ticketmaster ordering me not to miss Josh Groban at the Mohegan Sun Arena on March 8, 2007!!!....Sorry, I must disobey....Also passing on Andy Williams' Christmas Show (didn't realize Andy was still with us) and Smuckers Stars on Ice (didn't realize Smuckers had any stars - well, the grape jelly is pretty special, I guess)


Drivin' that train.....A new album that seems full of promise is The Road to Escondido, a blues collaboration between Eric Clapton and JJ Cale. Cale wrote After Midnight and Cocaine, two of Clapton's hits.

Those oldies but goodies...

We're getting ready to move Garrett to Brooklyn tomorrow morning and I've got my iPod on 'oldies' shuffle....a sample:

Bristol Stomp....no matter that it was about Bristol, TN, this was really cool in Bristol, CT in HS

Sixteen Candles....everyone has had his own Molly Ringwald

Until I Kissed Ya....Everly Brothers are SO underrated

I Need Your Love Tonight...Elvis

Try Me (I Need You)....James Brown & His Famous Flames

Sleep Walk....Santos & Johnny

Sea Cruise....Frankie Ford

Lonely World...Dion & the Belmonts

Hey Little Girl....Dee Clark

Raindrops....Dee Clark

The One Who Really Loves You...Mary Wells

Midgie....Jack Scott

Walkin' To New Orleans....Fats Domino...sure wish he played at Jazz Fest last year

Matilda...Cookie & the Cupcakes

Dancing In the Street....Martha & the Vandellas....STILL sounds great!

He Hit Me (and it felt like a kiss)...The Crystals....this is VERY weird; a Phil Spector (at least he didn't shoot you!)

Hey Baby....Bruce Chanel...harmonica by Delbert McClinton....one of my all-time favorites

Oh, baby, baby, it's a wild world....

Cat Stevens (okay, really Yusuf Islam), whom George W treats as a terrorist, has just released his first pop album in almost thirty years, but if you believe the reviews, you won't be hearing any new Peace Train. - NY Times review

Cat Stevens discography

Cat Stevens lyrics

Sunday morning, praise the dawning, It's just a restless feeling by my side....

Toad's Place, the once-great rock venue in New Haven hosting the likes of the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Lucinda Williams (she got pissed at Red Sox fans cheering a post-season victory during her encore), has been shut down for 90 days on an underage alcohol charge. This was foreshadowed in an observation by the Courant's Eric Danton in an 8/11/06 blog post. - story here

Stayed up to catch the beginning of SNL last night and predicted that the opening skit would be Nancy Pelosi....some pretty good lines and she worked the 'eye thing' pretty good throughout......SNL is pretty lame these days, I see.....Paul McCartney in a gratuitous cameo with Steve Martin and guest host Alec Bladwin.... Yes, they dragged in Tina Fey for an opening 30 Rock tie-in....Christina Aguilera was musical guest. Strange, I was very distracted during her energetic dance/sing routine wondering if she was really singing. Can't imagine anyone faking these days. Like her or not, her talent blows Britney away....

Mick Jagger's dad died at 93....

The Soul Express with Dean Farrell...

If you're homebound on Saturday night and want some great music while you read that novel, then try tuning in to The Soul Express with host Dean Farrell from 9pm to midnight on UConn's WHUS (you can program it through iTunes). In addition, his website is a great resource for a variety of music listings with lots of information and links to the artists. Check it out.

For example, he has a listing of his Top 300 60's Soul
1. DARK END OF THE STREET – James Carr (2/67) R&B #10, Pop #77
2. BRING IT UP – James Brown & The Famous Flames (1/67) R&B #7, Pop #29
3. THINK – Aretha Franklin (5/68) R&B #1 (3 weeks), Pop #7
4. I CAN’T TURN YOU LOOSE – Otis Redding (12/65) R&B #11, Did not chart pop
5. A CHANGE IS GONNA COME – Sam Cooke (1/65) R&B #9, Pop #31
6. WISH SOMEONE WOULD CARE – Irma Thomas (3/64) Pop #17, Cashbox R&B #2
7. HOLD ON! I’M A-COMIN’ – Sam & Dave (4/66) R&B #1 (1 week), Pop #21
8. PEOPLE GET READY – The Impressions (2/65) R&B #3, Pop #14
9. BERNADETTE – The Four Tops (3/67) R&B #3, Pop #4
10. AIN’T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH – Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell (6/67) R&B #3, Pop #19
11. (I KNOW) I’M LOSING YOU – The Temptations (11/66) R&B #1 (2 weeks), Pop #8
12. THERE IS – The Dells (2/68) R&B #11, Pop #20
13. PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW BAG – James Brown & The Famous Flames (7/65) R&B #1 (8 weeks), Pop #8
14. RESPECT – Aretha Franklin (5/67) R&B #1 (8 weeks), Pop #1 (2 weeks)
15. (YOUR LOVE KEEPS LIFTING ME) HIGHER AND HIGHER – Jackie Wilson (8/67) R&B #1 (1 week), Pop #6
16. THE TRACKS OF MY TEARS – Smokey Robinson & The Miracles (7/65) R&B #2, Pop #16
17. LAND OF A THOUSAND DANCES – Wilson Pickett (8/66) R&B #1 (1 week), Pop #6
18. DANCE TO THE MUSIC – Sly & The Family Stone (1/68) R&B #9, Pop #8
19. YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVIN’ FEELIN – The Righteous Brothers (12/64) R&B #3, Pop #1 (2 weeks)
20. ONE MORE HEARTACHE – Marvin Gaye (2/66) R&B #4 , Pop #29

It's early in the evening....

Late afternoon, listening to Aretha, Live at the Fillmore West, waiting for the UConn/Quinnipiac hoops opener....she actually makes Bread's I Wanna Make It With You sound good.....The Queen of Soul performs Sunday at 7 p.m. at the Palace Theater, 100 East Main Street in Waterbury, CT. Tickets are $50, $60 and $80. Information: 203-755-4700.

The Who, if you believe that missing Keith Moon and John Entwistle (dead and unavailable to contribute) still constitutes The Who, are getting good press on their new release Endless Wire, but I just can't bring myself to try it....

But Amy, I was soooo tired......

Despite good intent, I could not get my ass out the door and down to Cafe Nine in New Haven to catch Amy Rigby and her band. Settled for watching a great University of New Jersey vs. Louisville football game. Which brings up the frustrating issue of college football playoffs. How deep into the pockets of the NCAA must some people be to keep this from happening? The interest in an eight-team, three weekend playoff would blow March Madness out of the water. Sad. Here is a very good format as presented by Terry Bowden in Yahoo Sports. -

Lone star state nixes the wild man from Borneo....

Faded jaded falling cowboy star, Pawnshops itching for your old guitar. Where you're going, god only knows, The sequins have fallen from your clothes. Once you heard the opry crowd applaud, Now you're hanging out at fourth and broad On the rain wet sidewalk remembering the time When coffee with a friend was still a dime. And everything's been sold american, The early times is finished and the want ads all are read. Everyone's been sold american In dreaming dreams in a rollaway bed.

Our boy Kinky Friedman is not the next governor of Texas after all, having been soundly spanked at the polls. He'll survive. - story

Maybe they've already a-changed.....

In 2002, Twyla Tharp produced a Broadway play, Movin' Out, featuring the music of Billy Joel. It was a hit. One Bobby Zimmerman saw this and approached Ms. Tharp about doing the same with his catalog. She accepted. Apparently she shouldn't have, for reviews of the just-opened The Times They Are A-changin' (excepting those on the official website) are awful. The New Yorker's Joan Acocella killed it, citing Twarp's use of singers rather than dancers worked against her strength, and feeling that Twarp's perspective on the "Times" was "the sock-hop generation of the late fifties/early sixties" while "Dylan belongs to the real sixties, to sit-ins and drugs and apocalypticism, the world of what? Of him.".

Perhaps another way to know Bobby is "Bob Dylan: The Essential Interviews" a compilation assembled by Jonathan Cott and reviewed in the New Yorker by Louis Menand - BOB ON BOB

North to Alaska (or hampton)...

For today's trip to Turn It UP in Northampton, I had lists from GFK (Beatles, Stones, comedy) and JFK (Clash, Yeah Yeah Yeah's, Stooges, Bad Brains, Circle Jerks). I was only able to get Abbey Road. But all was not lost, I was able to get some good stuff for ME! The whole list:

Face to Face (Tiger Okoshi) - a favorite trumpet player from years ago

Abbey Road (Beatles) - G-Man is building his Beatles/Stones/Dylan catalog

The Very Best of (Otis Redding) - 2 CDs, 40 songs of the original dockers' man

Invitation (Joanne Brackeen) - very nice Brackeen piano with Clint Houston/bass and Billy Hart/drums recorded in 1976

So Tough (Carl & the Passions - Beach Boy Carl Wilson's album, he the underappreciated 'Boy

Holland (Beach Boys) - early 70's Beach Boys that I played often back then; not their best, but some very good songs

Music for you (and you know who you are).....

Wharf jazz
A promising new jazz series started last night at the Long Wharf Theatre, in New Haven, where "The Ag (Mom)" and I used to have season theatre subscriptions for many years. All performances are Fridays at 9 pm at Stage II. - Long Wharf site

November 3, 2006: Wayne Escoffery, saxophone, featuring vocalist Carolyn Leonhart.
January 19, 2007: Shawnn Monteiro, vocalist
February 2: Steve Davis, trombone
March 9: Harry Allen Quartet, saxophone
May 18: Phil Bowler, bass
June 1: Artists TBA

Amy Rigby
Amy Rigby will be performing (with full band) the songs from her terrific album, Diary of a Mod Housewife, on Thursday at Cafe Nine in New Haven (tourdates. I know you are too old to do that on a weekday night, but it would be worth your while. Terrific album.

James Hunter
"James Hunter is one of the best voices, and best kept secrets, in British R'n'B and Soul. Check him out."- Van Morrison. Well, you heard Van, check him out. Please forgive my evangelical preaching, but you will have your chance to see him on Tuesday, November 21st at the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton, MA. Hear tell from my sources that Trish/George were dancin' around the house to Mr. Hunter's cd! - NPR story

Sarah Borges
And don't forget that Sarah and her Broken Singles (featuring former Southington resident, Binky, on bass) will be at Cafe Nine on Saturday, December 9th. Do not miss her as she will be playing some new stuff from her album-in-progress-due-out-sometime-in-the-Spring!

Saturday morning and it's growing light.

Saturday morning and it's growing light.
I look out my window and remember the night.
The story is starting or the story ends
And I feel like I need you again.
Saturday Morning by Harry Chapin
Currently groovin' to the Rev. Al Green's greatest hits...."I I I I I....I'm so-o in love with you....."

Due to illness (mine), I was unable to catch Christine Ohlman & Rebel Montez last night at Cafe Nine.

Van Halen out front in the "who is worthy' poll of 2007 R&R Hall of Fame nominees. Wonder which lead singer (David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar or even that Gary Cherone guy) gets inducted? That should be a real love fest.

Did I mention that I LOVE the James Hunter CD, People Gonna Talk? Oh, I did?

The Sawtelles, whom Bones Jones and I enjoyed at this year's Daffodil Festival, are from Plantsville!!!!! I'd tell you where they are playing next, but I'm too inept to find their gigs on their websites. I shall persist.

D'Vinyl.....

Occasionally I will get guilty feelings about ignoring my record album collection, a collection crafted over decades at obscure record stores around the Northeast during lunch breaks, on vacations, or filling lazy Saturday afternoons before kids. Not that there's anything you've never heard of, but it's not half-bad. Some are easily replacible, some, like old jazz albums from Integrity 'N Music's cutout bins, are not. And some are just cool to have in your collection, but not that cool to hear often. John Prine Live (2 album set), Andy Pratt Shiver in the Night, The Phlorescent Leech & Eddie, a Mort Fega-produced Bobbi Rogers, Bette Midler's Divine Miss M, The Sons of Champlin....

There has been for years technology to convert albums to a digital format, but every time I explored the possibilities, I came away, in my technically-challenged universe, overwhelmed. But now things are getting closer. A recent Reuters article, Vinyl Vaults into Digital Age, gives examples of equipment/software that will do the trick at reasonable levels of expertise and cost.

For example, "...INport, designed by Xitel, a company based in Canberra, Australia... comprises a cable and a converter box the size of a credit card that connects a computer to a stereo. It also includes computer software to adjust sound levels and cut album sides into tracks once they are transferred."

Or, maybe I'll wait a little while before embarking on such a project...